Anyone who needs to send or receive money quickly uses Western Union. These include people supporting friends or relatives abroad, travellers and business people who need to make fast, international remittances.

You'll need to complete a "To Send Money" form and pay the agent the amount you want to send, plus fees, in cash.

To pick up the money, the receiver will complete a "To Receive Money" form at any Western Union agent location and provide proper identification. The agent then pays the transfer amount to the receiver.

Depending on the country and the agent, where the receiver picks up the money, the acceptable IDs will vary. In general passports and national IDs are acceptable. A driver’s license might not be valid.

In some cases the receiver might also need to verify their current address, for example with a utility bill.

Any time after the money has been sent, you can check your transfer status online. All you need is the tracking number (MTCN), which is printed on your receipt, the receiver’s country and the amount (receive amount).